Office-indicator



(No Model.)

L. GEAR'I-IART & e. N. MARKLE.

OFFICE INDICATOR.

Patented Feb. 8, 1898.

NITED STATES PAT NT OFFICE.

LEWIS GEARI-IART AND GEORGE N. MARKLE, OF OLEARFIELD, PENNSYLVANIA.

OFFICE-INDICATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 598,673, dated February 8, 1898.

Application filed November 13, 1896. Serial No. 611 ,99'7. (No model.)

To a, whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, LEWIS GEARHART and GEORGE N. MARKLE, citizens of the United States, residing at Clearfield, in the county of Glearfield and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Indicators; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to a novel construction in an indicator which is adapted more especially for use upon office-doors and the like, so that a person can close the door and by means of an indicator of this construction leave notice, so that persons calling and finding the office closed will be informed of the whereabouts or intentions of the office-holder, if he so desires. V

The invention consists in the features of construction hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a side elevation of an indicator constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same.

Referring now to said drawings, 1 indicates a casing provided with suitable ears 2, by means of which it can be secured to the door, and provided also with the front piece 3, having a transparent section. Situated within said casing are two rotatable rolls 4 and 5, mounted in bearings in the end plates of the casing and geared together, so that they turn in unison. The lower roll 5 is provided with a finger-picce 6, that is situated on the outside of the casing and by means of which the said rolls can be rotated. A band 7 is fastened at its ends to said rolls and can be provided on its outer face with any suitable characters, words, or letters to give the desired indication. For instance, when used upon the office-door it could have the words Come in, or Gone to lunch, or Back in ten minutes, or, in fact, any other words or sentences found convenient. It will therefore be seen that by turning the finger-piece 6 any one sentence upon the band 7 could be brought to view in an obvious manner.

As shown in the drawings, the rolls 4: .and 5 are provided upon their ends with gears 8, the said rolls on the inner sides of the gears having flanges 9 formed thereon. A central gear 10, journaled upon the side of the casing between and in meshwith the gears 8, lies between the inner wall of the casing and the faces of the flanges 9. In this way the gears are held firmly together and any liability of disarrangement, and consequently any inoperativeness of the indicator, is avoided.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

An office-indicator or the like comprising a casing having end walls, rolls journaled upon said end walls, a band secured at its ends to said rolls, gears upon said rolls adjacent to one of the end walls, flanges upon the rolls on the inner side of the gears, an intermediate gear journaled upon the wall adjacent to which the gears upon the rolls lie, said intermediate gear lying between and in mesh with the gears upon the rolls, being flanked by the wall of the casing and the flanges upon the rolls, and means for imparting rotation to the rolls; substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LEWIS 'GEARHART.

GEORGE N. MABKLE.

Witnesses:

WAYNE BURGE, J. H. AUGHENBAUGH. 

